19 Years Ago The Exxon Valdez Ran Aground

The case for Exxon to pay the $2.5 billion punitive settlement was heard by the Supreme Court in late February where Exxon argued that it would serve no "public purpose" for them to pay that amount. Last year Exxon posted earnings over $40.6 billion.

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"It's cruel. It's absolutely cruel" said Jennifer Gibbins, a clean-water activist who lives in Cordova, a small fishing town whose industry was almost completely wiped out by the oil spill. Decades later, the herring still haven't returned....

’The Exxon spill didn’t just threaten the environment; it caused immense harm to the livelihoods of commercial fishermen from Alaska, Washington and elsewhere, as well as to Native Alaskans who fished in those waters ...

’All of those individuals and associated businesses are still waiting to be made whole nearly 20 years after the Valdez spill... All states must be able to protect their coastlines from toxic spills by punishing reckless behavior. Washington Attorney General Rob McKenna, January 31 2008

On March 24 1989 some 11 million gallons of crude oil leaked from the ruptured hull of the Exxon Valdez in to the Prince William Sound, Alaska. In less than two months the oil had spread over 450 miles. Thousands of fish as well as other animals died immediately, an estimated 250,000–500,000 seabirds, 2,800–5,000 sea otters, 12 river otters, 300 seals, 22 orcas and 250 bald eagles- the full impact will never be known. The initial cleanup took three years with a cost of $2.1 billion.

The repaired Exxon Valdez was renamed the SeaRiver Mediterranean and, although banned from Alaskan waters, is still carrying oil around the world.

Exxon's Deadly Legacy Lives on for Fishermen

.....While all the fisheries were adversely affected by the spill, the most profoundly affected continues to be herring. When the ExxonValdez oil spill took place, the herring fishers had been preparing for the spring season to commence. As a result of the spill, the fishery was closed and we were entrenched in months and months of crisis management. Over the next several years the herring fishery fluctuated and then in 1993 there was a complete and unprecedented crash. Since that time, the herring population has not recovered and the fishery has remains closed to this day. Our herring permits and our gear are not only useless, they are worthless.

Fishermen such as myself have lost the equity we built, which was also our means of creating a retirement. I still carry the original debt and loan payments to the Alaska Division of Investments compounding at two to three times the original amount. In order to avoid bankruptcy, I have entered into an agreement with the State requiring me to sell my seine boat and permits and relinquish my entire punitive settlement. In a best case scenario, where the award is upheld at $2.5 billion plus interest, I will meet the debt owed to the State but loose my remaining fishing assets. Any reduction of punitive damages will result in a shortfall which will likely make bankruptcy inevitable.

In 2007, the Prince William Sound Science Center published a scientific paper linking the ExxonValdez oil spill to the herring crash. Scientific studies indicate that exposure to relatively low concentrations of ExxonValdez oil can compromise adult herring's immune systems and make them susceptible to disease. However, at the time of the trial, not all of the damages were quantified. On September 20, 1991 the State of Alaska and the Federal Government arranged to settle out of court with Exxon for a figure close to a billion dollars for compensation for the environmental damage, restitution for injuries to the fish, wildlife and lands of the spill region. By settling with Exxon, the State and Federal Government eliminated any leverage the fishermen had.

Countless motions and almost twenty years later we have finally neared the conclusion of Exxon's efforts to evade its responsibility. However, the plaintiff's faith in the Government as well as the judicial system has been permanently eroded. In light of the United States Supreme Court perceived inclination to reduce the punitive damages, our hearts are heavy. With a further judgment reduction, total amounts in many peoples claims will not even scratch those monies owed to the State. It is frustrating to think that upon conclusion of this trial many of us will be going bankrupt, our lives ruined again in this endless nightmare.

Why Exxon Won't Produce More

Oil fell nearly $5, to $104 per barrel, Mar. 19, on news of a government report showing slackening demand. Not long ago, a $5 drop would have been an astonishing plunge that shook the trading establishment. These days? Nah, that's just the ho-hum daily volatility in the oil market. But how is it that crude can still trade above $100 a barrel, three times what it sold for at the start of the decade, despite a very wobbly economy?

If you want to understand that, it helps to listen in to ExxonMobil's (XOM) presentation to analysts in New York City in early March. Halfway through the three-hour meeting, Exxon management flashed a chart that showed the company's worldwide oil production staying flat through 2012.

The Calculus of "Acceptable Investment Return"

Texas-based Exxon is the largest publicly traded company in the energy business. In fact, it's the most profitable company in the history of capitalism, earning a record $40.6 billion on sales of $404 billion last year. Yet even with prices at the pump near all-time highs, Exxon isn't planning on producing any more oil four years from now than it did last year. That means the company's oil output won't even keep pace with its own projections of worldwide oil demand growth of 1.2% a year.

"We don't start with a volume target and then work backwards," Tillerson explained. Instead, he said, his team examines the available investment opportunities, figures out what prices they'll likely get for that output down the road, and places their bets accordingly. "It really goes back to what is an acceptable investment return for us," Tillerson said. In other words, producing incremental barrels just to ease prices for consumers is not part of the company's calculations. Last year, ExxonMobil led the industry with a return on capital of 32%....

Exxon plans on bringing new fields online in Russia, the Middle East, and Africa over the next four years but they won't be enough to generate growth beyond what the company is losing due to the maturation of its fields in the North Sea and Alaska, the nationalization of its fields in Venezuela, and volumes lost due to those production sharing agreements with other countries....

Venezuelans burn Exxon "Judas" in Easter ritual

CARACAS (Reuters) - In a political take on a popular Easter ritual, hundreds of Venezuelans cheered at the burning of an "Judas" effigy symbolizing oil giant Exxon Mobil, which last week lost a battle with the South American nation...

A British judge last Tuesday lifted a $12 billion freeze on Venezuelan assets awarded to Exxon, dealing a blow to the oil giant in its fight with the OPEC nation over President Hugo Chavez's nationalization crusade....